Tuesday, 30 March 2010

Tuesday 30th March 2010 -- CML Supreme DivisionAnother very damp night, but full credit to both teams for giving us a decent game of football in the pouring rain - and it was bloody cold as well!!

Spent the game in great company -- always a pleasure to chew the fat with Fredkirkbytown, the Wanderer, his Son Rick and Rob Hornby, but as well as these esteemed football people, we had the pleasure of spending the second half in the company of serial hopper Chapeltom. Tom had made the trip into deepest, darkest Nottinghamshire from Chapel-On-Le-Frith - this was his first taste of CML football and I think he enjoyed it, although Rob did monopolise him for the majoity of the time!!

Last time we went to Clipstone they lost 0-2 to Kinsley Boys. After suffering defeat by the same score again, I suspect the Clippo faithful won't want us to go back there in a hurry!!

Kirkby are more or less a brand new team, only Nathan Hollingworth and Gavin Short remaining after the other players followed Brett Marshall out of the club recently. The game was only 4 minutes old when they took the lead. Clippo centre-half Dean Short tripped McParland in the box giving Referee Mr. Des Nutting no choice other than to award a penalty. SAM BAILEY stepped up and fired the ball past the Clipstone keeper Dale Shepherd.

Clipstone looked to be well out of sorts and anyone who didn't know different would have said it was they who hadn't been together long, not their visitors. The back four of Kirkby were well drilled and disciplined, giving away few chances - and when the back line was breached, they had young keeper Whittingham on hand to mop up.

Kirkby added a second on the half-hour when a hopeful shot from the edge of the box by Bailey was met by the outstretched boot of MARK WALTERS who steered the ball home from just 6 yards out. F-T 0-2

Clipstone were better in the second half, but they couldn't have worse in all honesty. They created little though, and as mentioned previously the Kirkby back four of Hollingworth, Simpson, Short and Leversedge were rarely troubled. F-T 0-2

Short report again ... it really was too cold and wet to make the effort to take notes!!

Monday, 29 March 2010

With Kev opting to stay in and watch the Trees/Toon game, I was undecided about whether to go to this game, but not fancying the TV game I made the short trip to Eagle Valley - a place previously noted for being prone to waterlogging. No worries on this occasion though, and it was a very damp night!

Paid my £2 to get in and on entering the ground, noticed that there was some standing water visible around the centre circle, but the pitch looked in fairly good nick and well done to the match officials and Arnold Town for ensuring this game went ahead. Mind you - a victory for the young Eagles would confirm them as League Champions, so I imagine it would have needed to be a lot worse than it was for this game to be called off!

The teams were evenly matched for the first half hour or so, although Arnold had the better of the chances. The home team went ahead on 32, when their left winger cut inside, played a neat 1-2 before curling a left foot shot into the top corner. 3 minutes later Arnold's no. 10 shirt CURLTY MARTIN-WYATT made it 2-0 , slipping the ball past the Calverton keeper after latching onto a great through ball by no.8. H-T 2-0

The game was effectively over as a contest with just 4 minutes of the second half played, Calverton's 13 jacket guilty of a fouling no.8 inside the area. He got up, composed himself and fair hammered the spot kick past the Calvo keeper.

With 10 to go, the rain developed into a bit of a downpour, but the lads kept battling on. It was 4-0 on 38 when the MARTIN-WYATT added his second after great wing play by his team mate in the 16 shirt. Calverton did manage to score in added time through their no.7, but it was Arnold's night and I left the ground to the sound of "campiones, campiones" etc etc..... F-T 4-1 Sorry, but no name for the shirts..... I wasn't even going to take notes, but old habits die hard!

Admission £2

Attendance h/c 50

Noticed on the back of the match programme that Arnold listed a squad of 28 players.... I wonder how many medals the league gives out?

Saturday, 27 March 2010

Bit of a shock result this one - Carnegie are third in NCEL Division 1, while Teversal have struggled to find any form lately and were a modest 13th in the table before kick off. The result was a real kick in the goolies for Carnegie, because while leaders Brighouse were losing at home to Pontefract Colls, second placed Tadcaster gave Eccleshill 4-0 drubbing at Ings Lane, increasing the gap between 2nd and 3rd to 4 points.

Our first chance to see the Carnegie team,and on looking at the player profiles in the matchday programme, it seems that their players are mostly in the 18-22 year old age group, and most are students at the University.

Always enjoy going to Teversal - we arrived slightly early so decided to have a walk through the Teversal Nature Park to get a few pics of the ground from a new angle.

The gatemen convinced me to part with £3 for a badge - and I don't even collect badges! Great salesmen! We were met by Mr. Keith Parnill as we entered the ground. He reunited me with a note pad I left in a puddle in the car park the last time we visited Teversal. The pad was a bit wrinkly, but perfectly usuable....thanks Keith!

The visitors took to the field in a striking purple kit, and began the game playing some neat free-flowing football, giving the home defence a few heart fluttering moments early doors. After just 5 minutes, the Leeds 7 shirt, Matt Chilton was given a chance to put his team ahead, but after being gifted the ball on the edge of the area, he fired just wide of Tevie keeper Jono Wilson's post.

No. 7 Matt Chilton

It was Chilton who created the next opening for Leeds, crossing in from the right for his centre-forward Chib Chliaka - but Wilson was able to smother the ball before the no.9 could react.

Chib Chilaka

Tevie took the lead from the penalty spot on 21. After Ross Henshaw had failed to convert a cross in from the right, he was upended giving Referee Mr. Godwin no option but to award a penalty. Mr. Godwin blew his whistle for the kick to be taken, even though it appeared Leeds keeper Jacob Giles was not ready. COLIN COCKERILL took full advantage of this and fired the ball into the side of the goal Giles had left completely open.

Colin Cockerill converts, much to the keepers surprise!

Tevie no. 11 Dave Cockerill hit a fierce drive on 25 that Giles was able to dive and tip out for a corner. The visitors were almost level on 35 when Chilton broke into the area and looped a decent effort against the Tevie bar with Wilson well beaten.

Right on the stroke of half-time Leeds should had a glorious chance to score after a mistake by Tevie's Danny Plumbe. The right back was disposessed in his own area and when Kyle Hawthorne hit the ball across the six-yard line, Chilaka had the simple task of tapping home. Unfortunately for the striker, he completely missed the ball allowing it to run between his legs and away to safety. Bad miss. H-T 1-0

We were walking to get a hot drink when Teversal Secretary Mr. Kev Newton stopped us to say hello. Kev is a keen reader of this blog, and told me that since our last visit when I mentioned the fact that at £0.75p I thought the drinks were a bit expensive, the club had a look at their pricing policy and has since reduced the drinks to £0.60p. I had coffee, Kev had tea and they were both excellent. Well done Tevie, and thanks for reading Mr. Newton!

As we took up our positions for the second period, we managed to grab a word with Tevie keeper Wilson. He reckoned that his team had been poor for the past few weeks, and warned us to expect them to collapse if Leeds applied severe pressure.

Jono Wilson

Well, Leeds did apply pressure , but Wilson's defence played out of their skin to keep their high flying visitors at bay. The pressure became even more intense when Leeds introduced subs John Hardy and Tom Leaver. These players are rapid, and when Hardy was through on goal on 77, good defensive pressure by Plumbe ensured the no. 12 hit his shot just wide.

2 minutes later, Tevie left back Jamie "Budgie" Goodacre clearly handled the ball at the nearpost - luckily for the home team Mr. Godwin's view was blocked by three of four players and nothing was given. If the Ref had have had our viewpoint, it would have been a penalty and probably a red card as well. Wilson had to be alert on 82, pushing away a terrific 18 yard drive from Chilaka.

With just one minute left to play, Tevie were awarded a free-kick on the edge of the Leeds box. We were debating which of the Cockerill 's would take it when COLIN stepped up and lashed the ball into the top corner. A belting free-kick that was hit keepers side, but there was no chance that Giles was going to get anywhere near it. F-T 2-0

Tuesday, 23 March 2010

Yet another poor performance by the home team, and only a 94th minute strike by JAKE SPIEGHT saved the Stags blushes. Yes, the weather was crap, yes the pitch was awful, but the visiting team seem to cope alright. Alty had two 6' 12" defenders, yet the Stags continued to fire ball after ball over the top - and were at times amazed when every one was cleared with consumate ease!! Special mention for the Alty no. 6 Shaun Densmore - he was superb.

One of the defenders, GREG YOUNG, headed Altrincham in front on 70, and only then did the Stags decide to play some half-decent football. The reward was the late strike by Spieght, but on reflection, the visitors will be disappointed that they couldn't hold out for another 30 seconds....F-T 1-1

Saturday, 20 March 2010

The company that employs Kev is, at the moment, in the somwhat envious position of having too much work on their books. This means that he is putting in overtime on Saturdays, leaving yours truly as "Billy No Mates" again. I had a nice, quiet uneventful drive to the Riverside, and there were plenty of parking spaces in the Ferryboat car-park. So far, so good.

Entered the ground, took up a decent position - then it rained. At first a bit of drizzle, then it fair tipped it down!! I soon re-located to one of the covered areas - where I was joined by Gedling MW programme editor/photographer Tony Hay. I have to say a bit of size envy went on -- his is much bigger than mine - what a nice, big camera he has...

Town striker GRAHAM EPPS opened the scoring in the fifth minute, although he has to say a big thank you to Welfare keeper Lance Walker who let the no. 9's effort fly from his grasp giving the striker a second chance to fire into the net.

Epps is far right, and the ball is visible just behind the defender on the post...

The keeper made amends later in the half though, diving to tip Epps' ferocious goal-bound drive around the post. Welfare's Chris Hall had their best chance on 40, forcing Town stopper Scott Miles into a great save - and although the ball ran loose from the save, no-one was on hand to accept a tap in.

Cory Nightingale upended Ayokunie Abbis in the box just before the break conceding a penalty, but according to Gedling Town chairman Roland Ash, the Referee got this wrong - it seems that Nightingale won the ball and the player jumped over his leg. From where I was standing it looked to be as clear a stone-wall penalty as you will ever see! Aaron Large failed to beat Walker from the spot, the keeper diving to his left to push away. From the corner though, ASHLEY DICE headed home to double the home teams lead. H-T 2-0

Walker saves from Large

It was 3-0 to the home team on 53 when Epps picked out RYAN KING with a pinpoint pass - the no.7 didn't even have to break stride, calmly slotting the ball past Walker.

Referee Mr Craig Cox had booked several players in the first half, and he carried on brandishing cards on regular intervals throughout the second. He also had occasion to show a red card to Town left-back James Jepson and Welfare midfielder Chris Ison. When Jepson had his ankle stepped on by Craig Boulton, he kicked out at the Welfare sub, and was given a straight red. Ison was guilty of raising an arm, again a straight red card. What I missed was the fact that there was a third red card - this was for Welfare Manager Graham Walker - dismissed for foul and abusive language aimed at Assistant Referee Eddie Pidduck.

So, umpteen yellows, 3 reds.... sounds like a nasty game? Far from it. The conditions were awful, and the sendings off may have been justified, but Mr. Cox failed to take the conditions into account and there will be a fair few fines to pay in the near future!

Gedling Town are just getting their act together now under new Management duo of Mick Galloway and Martin McArdle. Welfare seem to be on a bit of a slide recently, and losing top scorer Warren Hatfield to Hucknall Town won't help. The Plains Road outfit looked really toothless again in this game, and you have to wonder where their next goal will come from. F-T 3-0

Tuesday, 16 March 2010

Tuesday 16th March 2010 -- BSPThe big decision today was whether to go to this game or not - well, season ticket dictated and off to the Mill we went again. Arrived in plenty of time and immeditely noticed that there were a lot of empty seats around the ground, far more than usual. Turned out to be less than 2400 Stags fans but thankfully for the home bank balance, there were 290 visiting fans.......The game was a lot better than Saturday's effort, but that was more due to the fact that York are a classy team and outplayed their hosts big-time. Stags were second best in every department, and to be honest, never looked like bothering a City defence in which former Stags centre-half Luke Graham played a starring role. Why the Stags let Luke go is beyond me - mind you there have been quite a lot of strange decisions made by Manager David Holdsworth this season...not many of them good either!Match report from the Stags Official website can be found here , but after a goal-less first half Courtney Pitt scored a blinder for the Minstermen on 61. Thr midfielder was left alone in space, and when picked out by a cross field ball he cut inside and unleashed a terrific drive that two keepers wouldn't have stopped.....great goal. Well worth looking for on you-tube!

Stags gave away a penalty soon after,but although Richard Brodie hit it well enough, Stags keeper Alan Marriott dived to his right to tip the effort away for a corner. Stags skipper Luke Foster was booked for protesting the decision, and when he took out Michael Rankine on 82, the Referee had no other choice than to show a 2nd yellow followed quickly by a red. F-T 0-1Poor showing again by the Stags, but York were as good as anything we have seen at the Mill this season. Will we be going to the Stags v Altrincham game next Tuesday? Probably.....Admission : Season ticketAttendance : 2638 ( 290)Sponsors MOM : Alan MarriottOn The Road MOM : Gary SilkChance of a bonus game on Wedsnesday - Chesterfield Arms v Calverton Cherry Tree -- Notts Sunday League Majestic Trophies Cup semi-final at Greenwood Meadows.....kick off 7:30pm

Saturday, 13 March 2010

My turn to drive - and wouldn't you know it - trouble! Just got past the Badger Box pub when the traffic stopped......and as we approached the lights at Shoulder of Mutton Hill there was a police car diverting traffic through Kirkby. There had been an accident and Derby Road was closed. By the time we got chance to turn around and try to get to our game in time for the kick off, it was already 2:30pm.

A quick fly back to Hucknall, a neat divert through Linby, then onto the A60 into Mansfield, and as usual when you are in a hurry, hitting every traffic light on red! We parked up as usual in the Odeon car park and a brisk walk later we arrived at the Mill. Time? 2:59pm!

We thought it was great as we emerged from the tunnel into the Quarry Lane end - the crowd all stood up and applauded. On taking a quick glance to our left though, we realised that the applause was directed at the teams who were just entering the playing area and not to us for our efforts in getting to the ground on time.

Some men kicked a ball about for 90 odd minutes, some people shouted abuse, some chanted "what a load rubbish", some booed - then we came home.

Thursday, 11 March 2010

Third game in three days -- Mrs. Kev will be looking at serving divorce papers at this rate, and I will soon be experiencing brain meltdown keeping this blog up to date...!!

Another game where most people are known to each other -- the list included Rob Hornby, Richard Lane, Danny Staley, Simon Matters, Neil Smith, Brian Dennett and "the tall lad", who advised us his name is Chris, but he likes "the tall lad" nickname, so hopefully it will stick.....

After the first 10 minutes in which there was little football played, we began to wonder if my prediction of a goal-fest was somewhat optimistic. Kimberley had a few new faces on show and they took a while gettling down, but the home team did take the lead on 15 when evergreen Roy Sharpe played in STEVE RUDGE who beat off a challenge before drilling the ball past the Southwell keeper.

Another spell of huffing and puffing followed, but then on the half-hour, both teams switched off defensively - first Town's Marvin Wilson let the ball go past him, allowing ADAM MEAKIN to hook the ball over keeper Lycett, then straight from the restart, City won a corner that the home defence failed to clear leaving a tap in at the near post. Kimberley were soon level though, this time ROY SHARPE hammering home after being played in by Rudge. H-T 2-2

The half-time bevvies were served up by Kimbo Chairman Graeme Critchley - and very nice they were too.

Seemed a very short interval, but we were out in the chill again in time to see Kimberley take the lead on 47 through RYAN BOWEN - a fierce drive from 12 yards that flew past the City keeper. ANTHONY "FRENCHIE" CANDELLA increased the home teams lead soon after, crashing the ball into the roof of the net after some decent approach play and more poor defending. Kimberley's lead was reduced from the kick off when the home defence left a Southwell player unmarked on the edge of the box and he hammered the ball arrow straight past Lycett.

The game went into a bit of a lull and after having seen 6 goals in a mad 25 minute spell, we had to wait until the 78th minute for the next goal - it fell to Southwell who took advantage of yet more slack defending to make it 4-4. This ended the scoring, but with just five minutes to go, the Referee decided to dish out bookings to a couple of the Town players when a quiet word would have been sufficient. He'd had a decent game up until then - but like Mr. Jackson last night, Mr. Hunt seemed to lose the plot late on..... F-T 4-4

Wednesday, 10 March 2010

Great to be out and about on a Wednesday, and it was a very pleasant evening spent at the Town ground. Decent game, really good company, cracking coffee - the only downer was the performance of Sutton-In-Ashfield Referee Mr. Robert Jackson late in the game. Don't misunderstand, he had been having a fair game until the final 5 minutes or so... then he lost the plot a little....but more of that later.

Kev drove again.. and he found a parking space just a few hundred yards down the road from the ground. It was something of a relief to get out of the car - the car radio was tuned to Radio 1, and I couldn't understand any of what was being broadcast....

Re-tuned to Radio Derby on the way home to hear a very, very dismal commentary on Reading v Derby - mind you it was 4-1 to Reading, but I hope someone checks on the commentator tonight to ensure he hasn't topped himself... blimey was he ever depressed......!!

Enjoy going to Heanor - pay at a table -- no luxuries like turnstiles here, but they do issue a ticket. Met up with good buddy Brian Dennett inside the ground, and he informed us that Steve "The Bank Manager" Reading was in the club. Steve works in Ripley and was decked out in suit and tie, having driven to Heanor straight from work.....nice shiny shoes too!!

Also joined by a good friend from our Eastwood days... strange but after all these years we don't even know his name, so I hereby bestow on him the nickname of "the tall lad". He reads this blog and will hopefully be at our next game at Kimberley - so maybe we can sort this out then!!!!

I was looking forward to seeing the Dunkirk front pairing of Channon Grant and Lee Day again, and it was DAY who opened the scoring on 7 after latching onto a through ball by Grant. The Dunkirk no. 10 remained calm and steadied himself before firing the ball past Sam Ogrizevic in the Town goal.

The lead lasted barely 8 minutes though - GARY WEBSTER hitting a fine drive from 18 yards that flew past Dunkirk keeper Nick Ivanov. Both teams were fully committed and one or two tasty challenges went in, but nothing malicious. H-T 1-1

Decided to grab a hot drink during the interval, and was pleasantly surprised when "the tall lad" offered to pay. The coffee was hot - very hot.....they must have a thermo nuclear device hidden somewhere in the Heanor kitchen. Very nice drink, and the only failing was that the cup was one of the smaller styrofoam efforts....would maybe have been a 10/10 apart from the fact that the cup was a bit diddy..... anyway, thanks "tall lad"!

Heanor took the lead on 54, and it was real route one stuff. A clearance by keeper Ogrizevic saw GRAHAM WELLS win the race and get the better of Dunkirk defender Dwaine Soar before stroking the ball past Ivanov. It stayed at 2-1 until the 42 minute when Mr. Jackson came into his own. For some unknown reason he awarded a corner to Dunkirk when all the Reds' players were seemingly marching towards the half way line to prepare to fight for the ball from a goal-kick. Wouldn't you know it, not only did the corner bring the equalising goal, it was a terrific, well placed headed flick by the Heanor no. 8 who was guarding the near post. As Steve R said, he couldn't have placed it better. It fairly flew past the keeper who had no chance of making a save.

Then Mr. Jackson went a little silly. The Heanor players were guilty of surrounding him and protesting, and even at this level players should know the Ref is not going to change his mind. Obviously the Heanor players were well pissed off, and one was dismissed, then after consulting his Assistant on the dugout side, Mr. Jackson duly sent of Heanor Joint Manager Craig Hopkins. All a bit of a farce really, and only Mr. Jackson knows why he awarded the corner in the first place. It has to be said though that the ball into the near post was a peach - and the headed own goal, although unfortunate, was a beauty. F-T 2-2

Tuesday, 9 March 2010

Two of our favourite clubs went head to head with the prize of a home semi final tie with Eastwood Town.

Gedling MW are currently lying 3rd in the East Midlands Counties League (step 6), while Forest Town are 6th in the Central Midlands Supreme Division (step 7), so this result is a bit of a shock.

Arrived at the ground with 15 minutes spare, and struggled to find a parking space - apparently the Fitness Centre gets a bit busy on Tuesday nights.......

Entered the ground expecting quite a few people to be present, but there were only half-a-dozen or so souls to be seen. Surprised that at kick off time there were over 70 present - but I have to say, I have absolutely no idea where they were all hiding!!

We were handed a team sheet - a great idea that more teams should take on board. After deciding to stand up to watch the game ( we usually sit at Plains Road, but Kev's back is a bit dodgy), we were both anticipating a cut and thrust encounter with no quarter asked and no quarter given. There were a few meaty challenges early doors, and although Gedling looked a yard faster than their visitors, as an attacking force they lacked a little bite. Welfare left winger Shaun Clarke fired a fierce drive wide of the Forest Town goal on 20, then in the 35th minute his free-kick from 20 odd yards rattled the bar - apart from that Jason Johnson in the Foggy goal had a fairly quiet first half. Mind you, Lance Walker in the home goal wasn't exactly over-worked either. H-T 0-0

Plenty of well known faces in attendance tonight, and we had a chat with local Referees Rob Townsend and Dave Plowright during the break. Spent the second half in the company of former Greenwood Meadows Manager Mark Connor - what he doesn't know about the local game isn't worth knowing!

Gedling opened the scoring on the hour when WARREN HATFIELD pounced on a loose ball in the box before spinning and volleying home. We thought the floodgates would open, but Forest Town pulled up their socks and began passing the ball about - and when Castedine's 73rd minute through ball fell into the path of striker ANDY WOODCOCK, the former Teversal striker ran on and fired hard into the net. Walker managed to get a hand to the effort, but it was very well hit and the keeper did really well to even get near it!

10 minutes later Forest Town were awarded a penalty for handball .. looked a bit soft - I didn't think it was even in the area, but my eyes were watering by this time as the temperature dropped...... anyway, Danny Tighe stepped up and fired the spot-kick home, and although Welfare did step up their game for the final minutes, the Forest Town defence stood firm and will now face Eastwood at home. Scheduled for Tuesday April 6th, but I can't see that happening...Eastwood play Gainsborough on Monday 5th.... F-T 1-2

Saturday, 6 March 2010

As the teams lined up, the Mansfield Town Chaplain gave a moving tribute to Mr. Keith Alexander who sadly passed away on Wednesday. A minutes round of applause followed - I think this is a much better option than the usual minutes silence......and credit to everyone present for keeping the up volume of the applause throughout the whole minute.

After 29 minutes, we were lamenting about how the Stags were failing to impress, and looked like screwing with our goals per game average again -- then bang - two goals and the smile back on our faces! I had just told Kev that if things didn't improve, I would be looking at alternatives for next Saturday, when JON CHALLINOR hit a 16 yard effort that deflected under visiting keeper James Bittner. JOHN SHAW hammered the second on 37, a Williams cross field ball that found Briscoe who beat his man and crossed into the box where JON SHAW was waiting to head powerfully home.

Two minutes later the visitors pulled one back - after the ball flicked up into the air from a free-kick, Marriott did well to push the ball onto his post, but was left on his backside as REECE CONNOLLY tapped home the loose ball from a yard out. We later learned that a spectator had thrown his season ticket at Stags boss David Holdsworth as he walked off the pitch at the break.... I know it's been bad at the Mill recently, and I've been tempted not to go, but I've never thought of chucking in my season ticket!! Shame that Holdsworth threw his dummy out of the pram at full time though by refusing to talk to the media - apparently he was still fuming about the incident!! Grow up lad, please, you're a big boy now. H-T 2-1

Kyle Nix is one of my favourite Stags players at the moment, and when Jon Challinor went of injured at half-time, he teamed up with Gary Mills. What a midfield pairing that is! With those two playing well, and Louis Briscoe having his best game all season (his words, not mine), the Stags looked very classy second half. It took until the 75th minute for the Stags to increase their lead - Gary Mills capitalising on a loose ball and running some 50 yards before crossing into the area where KYLE PERRY was on hand to steer home.

Four minutes were to be added, and when Ben Adelsbury hit a drive from distance that flew past Marriott, there were a few worried faces both on and off the pitch.

ROB DUFFY eased those worries when he fired home the Stags fourth in the 5th minute of stoppage time - extra extra time added because of a an horrendous challenge by Stuart Anderson on Gary Mills that saw the midfielder get only a yellow, when the tackle looked to warrant a straight red. Referee Mr. Khatib may have got that wrong, but then when he looked to be about to blow for full time, allowing Briscoe to play on and find Duffy was a great decision. F-T 4-2

Admission : season ticket ( still in my possession!)

Attendance : 2842 ( 38 from Salisbury)

Tuesday : Two of our favourite teams go head to head as Gedling MW take on Forest Town in a Notts F.A. Senior Cup 1/4 final.

Thursday, 4 March 2010

Well, after all the recent postponed games, finally a Thursday night game at the Stag Ground ... and this only went ahead after Pinxton right back Josh Parker made a running repair to the floodlight electrics! Mind you, although Kimberley Chairman Graeme Critchley was pleased at the time that the game was to go ahead, I suspect he may now be having second thoughts!!

Travelled the 3 miles to Kimberley on my own - Kev was having his back manipulated by top physiotherapist Fred Kirk ...and it's just his luck to miss a goal-fest! Thanks for fixing my car though, buddy!

Met up with good friends Danny Staley and Brian Dennett inside the ground and had plenty of time for a chin-wag as the kick off was put back to 8pm - the extra time needed for the lights to get up to full strength.

Pinxton took the lead from a corner in just the 4th minute ...DAVE ROBINSON sliding home after the home defence failed to clear as the ball was fired across the goal.

Another corner on 34 saw the visitors double their lead ..this time the ball was headed back across goal to where AARON BRADY was on hand to tap in from close range. H-T 0-2

Headed for the warmth of the clubhouse to where, shock horror, Brian PURCHASED the beverages. Very nice it was too ... just how I like it -- strong enough to keep you awake all night..... smashing cup - thanks Brian.

Kimberley reduced their arrears 6 minutes into the second period - but they have to thank Pinxton keeper Dave McCarthy who completely fluffed a one-on-one challege with ROY SHARPE leaving the striker free to steer the ball into the empty net.

That was as good as it got for the home team though. Yet another corner on 70 saw home keeper Lycett make a hash of collecting DAVE ROBINSON'S near post header, allowing the ball to slip though his arms and into the back of the net. AARON BRADY had a tap in on 82, and this was followed a minute later by a KEIRON DEBROUER strike from the edge of the box that gave Lycett no chance.

The final act of the game came, inevitably from a Pinxton corner. This time JAMIE RENSHAW capitalising from 6 yards after more inept defending. F-T 1-6

Tuesday, 2 March 2010

The Stags man of the match was awarded to Louis Briscoe, and I can only imagine it was for his wild slide tackle on team mate Gary Mills halfway through the first period. Unless the sponsors picked a name out of a hat of course!!

Interesting to hear the views of Tony Delahunty and guests on Mansfield Radio - they could not have been at the same game as we were....."battled hard, defended from the front, showed some decent skills".... err,,sorry, no - this was a freezing Tuesday night bore-draw and the Luton players were stronger, showed more ability and easily coped with whatever the light-weight home team had to offer.

Admission : season ticket - I will persevere, but the games coming up v Salisbury and Tamworth need to be better than this to keep my eyes from wandering over other fixtures.....

Attendance : 3407 ( 474 from Luton)

Off to see some proper football on Thursday - Kimberley Town v Pinkstone in the CML floodlit cup....